Double oven range appliances generally include upper and lower cooking chambers. A user of double oven range appliances may conveniently utilize either or both of the upper and lower cooking chambers to cook food items. Double oven range appliances also generally include two doors, one for providing selective access to the upper cooking chamber and another for providing selective access to the lower cooking chamber. The doors are generally rotatably mounted to a cabinet of the oven appliance with hinges. Thus, the user of the double oven range appliance may rotate the doors open on the hinges in order to access the upper and lower cooking chambers.
In certain double oven range appliances, the upper cooking chamber is smaller than the lower cooking chamber. Thus, the user may utilize the upper cooking chamber to cook smaller food items and the lower cooking chamber to cook larger food items. However, because the upper cooking chamber is relatively small compared to the lower cooking chamber, viewing and/or accessing food items or cookware in the upper cooking chamber can be difficult or awkward. To facilitate access to food items within the upper cooking chamber, the door may be opened and may slide a drawer assembly into and out of the upper cooking chamber. Typical drawer assemblies include two slide assemblies and a rack assembly that supports a cooking tray.
Notably, the rack assembly must be sufficiently sturdy to support the weight of the drawer assembly and food articles placed therein when it is extended from the slide assemblies in a cantilevered position. In addition, the rack assembly must be rigid enough to prevent “racking,” or binding of the rack assembly within the cabinet due to misalignment.
Conventional oven appliances use a rack assembly that is constructed from multiple pieces of sheet metal that must be formed into U-shaped brackets and then welded or otherwise fastened together. However, these rack assemblies require multiple parts, involve complicated assembly, and result in heavy rack assemblies.
Accordingly, an oven appliance with an improved rack assembly would be useful. More specifically, a rack assembly requiring fewer parts and a simpler process for manufacturing and assembly while providing sufficient structural rigidity and strength for use in a drawer assembly would be particularly beneficial.